Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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273. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the effect the present recruitment embargo has had over the past number of years upon the ability of local authorities to deliver their services effectively; if he will highlight the local authorities which have most suffered as a result of staffing shortages; the measures he has proposed to address these high-pressure areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5305/15]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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The moratorium on recruitment and promotion in the public service was introduced in March 2009 in response to the financial crisis. My Department operates a delegated sanction from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for implementation of the moratorium in relation to local authorities, and any exceptions to the moratorium in local authorities require sanction from my Department. Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authorities for which he or she is responsible. In this regard, it is a matter for each Chief Executive, in the first instance, to ensure that the moratorium is implemented while the appropriate service levels are maintained.

During the moratorium, local authorities had to reduce staffing numbers in order to balance their finances. This is reflected in the fact that local authority numbers started to reduce from June 2008. The number employed across all local authorities at the end of June 2008 was 37,243; by end December 2014, this had fallen to 26,735 representing a reduction of 10,508 or 28%.

Since the implementation of the moratorium, and the large staff reductions, local authorities have undertaken work force planning to identify how the remaining staff can be optimally deployed and where there are real vacancies that need to be filled. This process in turn informs the sanctioning process. Local authorities have re-deployed staff and re-allocated work to fill the gaps. Where the gaps can’t be filled, local authorities apply to my Department seeking sanction to recruit.

The Department has carefully operated its delegated sanction from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to facilitate the targeted replacement of staff in key service areas where specific exemptions are available subject to appropriate applications being made. In this regard, over 7,200 local authority staff sanction requests have been approved by my Department since the moratorium was introduced in 2009.

As announced in the recent Budget, it is proposed that with effect from 2015, the moratorium and the Employment Control Framework for the Public Service will be lifted but recruitment/promotion will be subject to adherence to binding three year pay ceilings. Staffing resources must be managed within these overall ceilings. Detailed arrangements in terms of the local authority sector are currently being worked out between my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.